


Pumpernickel Magic: Day 1

by BNZG



Series: Pumpernickel Magic [1]
Category: No Fandom, Original Work
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy, Friendship, Giant/Tiny, Giants, Human, Macro/Micro, Mage, Magical World, New World, Size Difference, daily life, gentle giant
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-09-10
Updated: 2017-09-10
Packaged: 2018-12-26 02:00:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 21,191
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12048975
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BNZG/pseuds/BNZG
Summary: Leon Sanders considered himself a young, unadventurous man who was far too cynical at age of twenty-two. When a vortex sucks him right from his walk to his apartment to the cavernous home of a gigantic, magical child prodigy from a world scaled-up, he realizes that maybe he wasn't cynical enough. Now, property of a kid half his age, with no idea how to get back, and in a world that probably took place above a beanstalk, Leon, or "Clip," has to somehow make do in a world too large for him, and try to convince his child-master to take him back to his own world.So far...he's failing at both.





	1. Dimension Hopping

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: Leon has a potty mouth.

He remembered those last thirteen minutes with the utmost clarity than he had remembered anything that happened in his life with such accuracy.   
  
The energy drink had finally wore off and he felt the after-effects of it full force.   
  
He felt his eyes droop and then loudly yawned, swiveling in his chair behind the counter. The motion didn't help him wake up at all, as he propped his arms up on the counter, resting his head on them as he sullenly looked out the window. The sun was setting, painting the sky several hues of orange, violet and pink. The ground was still wet from the afternoon rain, and he could hear the constant dripping from the old, drainage pipe outside.   
  
He hated Tuesdays.   
  
Mondays were the worse, but Tuesdays, for some reason tended to feel worse, as weird as it sounded.   
  
Probably because at least everyone hated Mondays, so no one expected much. They signaled the beginning of a work week. They had meaning. Tuesdays were just  _awkward_ though. Wednesdays meant hump day, Thursdays were the day before Friday and Fridays were...well Fridays. Second only to the weekend. Well, he worked some weekends but still...   
  
He glanced at the clock, finding it hard to focus on the bright, red letters. It was 7:17 PM, only thirteen minutes until he could fly to coop and go to bed. Well, not quite go to bed...   
  
More like take a nightly nap, wake up at the midnight hour, go back to bed an hour or two later, and come back at around ten-thirty in the morning.   
  
But at least he got off at 3:00 on Tuesday.   
  
The last few minutes were always the hardest. No matter what the situation, it seemed to always slow down to a crawl. Becoming agonizingly long and boring, especially since his phone died two hours ago and there was no one else in the tea shop. Somewhat odd and not at the same time. It was after work, almost night, and felt like the perfect weather for someone to at least stop by to drink some tea and have him have to stay several minutes longer than he'd have to. But it happens; sometimes people didn't just want to go out when its damp outside.   
  
He looked passed the intersection, watching an elderly couple across the street, with a girl he assumed to be their grandchild jumping puddles with a splash. He let out a subdued smile at the sight of the grandfather turning his head and apparently admonishing the child for getting water and mud on his trousers, while the grandmother merely grinned down to the child, whose smile hadn't wavered. A business woman, probably in her mid to late thirties hurriedly passed them by, her face looking down and her phone to her ear, apparently not noticing that she stopped a car that was about to turn from colliding with her. He always hated people like that, who couldn't look up for a minute to see where they were going.   
  
He sighed and then blew his lips before glancing up at the clock. Only two minutes had passed. Eleven more minutes to go.   
  
"Should have brought my charger..." he said to himself, tapping on the counter impatiently. "Damn..."   
  
He huffed before standing up from his chair. He had already wiped down the counters, tables, windows and glass door. He swept and mopped the floor ten minutes beforehand, and checked inventory. The sign was switched to " **CLOSED** " at 7:15 (not that it seemed to deter many customers; if someone was behind the counter, they'd knock on the door), and he just needed to wait a few more minutes to punch out.   
  
He was pretty sure Terrence had probably called him an hour before, not that he could do anything about it with his phone on empty. His friend knew better than to call him through the shop's phone after hearing from his uncompromising supervisor who  _hated_ calls that weren't related to customers or work. When she took it out on Leon, in front of a dozen customers, Terrence quickly learned to never call him again. Not that he blamed him, more so than he blamed his uppity tramp of a boss for treating her small business like a major corporation.   
  
He was ninety-five percent sure she was either schizo or just a bitch.   
  
Either way, even with the knowledge that she was almost never there Tuesday nights, he was pretty sure she did something to screen calls or something not far from it. She seemed paranoid enough to do it.   
  
He really should have brought his charger. That was mistake number one.   
  
It was 7:24 now, six minutes until he could walk out the door.   
  
 _"You know what?"_ he thought,  _"Screw it."_  
  
What difference would six minutes make when no one was going to have time to do anything? Shop was closed anyway.   
  
That was mistake number two, probably the biggest mistake in hindsight.  
  
He walked to the closet behind the wall and went for his white hoodie, pulling it over his red T-shirt. He readjusted his glasses and checked to see that his keys were still in place. He lost count how many times he had his keys drop out of his pockets only to find out when he arrived at his apartment door to find out he was locked out and had to either walk back or asked the landlord for a spare to use.   
  
He glanced back at the clock one more time to see that only thirty seconds had passed and walked to the door. If Mrs. Geralds throws a hissy fit in the morning, who cares? While far and few between, it wasn't the first time he left early, and it wasn't a big deal.   
  
He walked turned off the lights and turned the alarm on, waiting until he heard the timed beeping before walking outside. He closed the door, locked it and turned around before walking the almost-mile long walk back to his apartment.   
  
It was a lot colder now and he wished he had brought a thicker hoodie or a better jacket. He was bound to be in a sneezing fit the moment he got home.   
  
He hated Tuesdays.   
  
He hated a lot of things actually, when he thought about it. He hated the fact that he worked under a pissy woman with delusions of grandeur. He hated the fact that he had to drop out of college in his sophomore year thanks to a financial screw-up and was stuck with a pissy woman with delusions of grandeur. He hated the fact that his mother decided to marry a man who caused the financial screw-up, which caused him to drop out of college and work under a pissy woman with delusions of grandeur.   
  
He was just hating life in general at the moment.   
  
Maybe it was the fact that he was tired that left him in a foul mood, or the fact that he was in a foul mood he was tired, but he began to reflect on everything that had happened in the past two years.   
  
But at the moment, he was just hating Tuesdays.   
  
Maybe he should have grabbed a cup of coffee from the shop instead, or a cup of tea. Then he thought about it; he didn't really drink tea all that much. He'd just stick to energy drinks.   
  
He decided to cut through the alley since it was the quickest way to get home. That was mistake number three, the second biggest mistake.   
  
He glanced at his phone, as if expecting it to magically come on and show him messages. Of course, all he saw was a dark reflection of himself, his dirty blonde hair tussled a bit from the wind and a small, disappointed frown on his face.   
  
While he had always been a mellow sort of guy, he didn't remember how he began thinking like he was someone going through a midlife crisis and taking on the mindset of someone who stopped wearing rose colored glasses decades ago. If it started in college after receiving the news he only had a couple of weeks left or when he heard his step father for three years had ran off with the money they had saved up. Or was it when Francine left him two weeks before Valentines Day? Hell if he knew. Thanks to his phone being dead, he didn't have music keep him from reflecting on the matter. No music, too much thinking...damn Tuesdays.   
  
The wind howled, causing him to shiver and curse under his breath. Sighing heavily, he put his phone back into his pocket as he walked on. The three story walls of the buildings on both sides of the narrow alleyway were taking most of the brunt of the wind at the very least. Still too cold for a simple hoodie.   
  
It was going to be a long walk home again.   
  
The wind seemed to whistle a bit louder as he thought about what happened in February, almost an entire month ago.   
  
 _"It's not your fault Leon, really...my classes and work...you know how it is."_  
  
 _"It wasn't a problem before. What changed? It's me isn't it? Just say it straight up, it's me!"_  
  
 _"Leon..."_  
  
 _"Is it because I work a dead-end job? Is it because of mom? Did mom scare you off? If it is, I'll tell her th-"_  
  
 _"No, no it isn't your mom. It isn't...isn't her fault. Your job either."_  
  
 _"Then why...? I thought we were going strong! Did...did you meet someone else?"_  
  
 _"What! No! I'm not that kind of person Leon...,you know that. It's because..."_  
  
 _"Because...?"_  
  
 _"You've...you've changed."_  
  
 _"So it is me..."_  
  
 _"Not like that! It's just that you've been...distant. I mean...even when I'm with you, it's like you're not even there."_  
  
 _"Fran..."_  
  
 _"I know you have a lot going on, with your stepdad and your mom, and school but you've been more...away. And, I mean, I know I've been with you for the long haul but...you didn't tell me anything until it was too late! You don't tell me anything!"_  
  
 _"I told you what happened."_  
  
 _"After your mom told me first! Listen...please...I still love you. You know that, but I think we need a break."_  
  
 _"Francine...no..."_  
  
 _"At least for a little bit...maybe not even permanently. You know I still love you but...you don't talk to me."_  
  
 _"I'm talking with you right now."_  
  
 _"After how long? Even Terrence said you weren't talking to him as much."_  
  
 _"Terrence told you that?"_  
  
 _"I asked him...but that's got nothing to do with this. Maybe a few weeks or months from now, we should give it a go, but for now..."_  
  
 _"Please Fran...don't."_  
  
 _"I know it hurts...it hurts me to say it too. But with you, classes and work...at least...at least for now..."_  
  
"Or for never," Leon muttered to himself aloud. Then he remembered...she had broken up with him on a Tuesday. He hated how he was doing such a good job not thinking about her for most of the day until that moment.   
  
The wind was getting stronger. Geez, he couldn't wait until Spring. Well, more so Summer since Spring had cold days too. It was pushing him forward at least, instead of backwards. The buildings apparently no longer did anything since it felt like the wind changed direction.   
  
He grabbed his hood and pulled it over his head, pulling at the drawstrings to secure it so it wouldn't be blown back. It cut off some of his line of sight with it secured so tightly, but he could have looked down at his feet the entire time and know how to get back without looking up. He had taken the alley way so many times, as it was almost always empty and saved a lot more time than crossing a few busy streets.   
  
He really needed to stop thinking for a moment. While he never considered himself an alcoholic, but he was willing to take some shots when he got home.   
  
Scratch that...just some sleep.   
  
The wind blew harder, if that was possible. He grabbed his sleeves and rubbed them against his arms to generate more warmth. It was not this windy when he had left the store. Had the distance not seemed so miniature form his apartment to the store, he would have just driven his beat up Sedan his dad had given him before his parents divorced. But wasting the gas on someplace he could get to in such a short time didn't seem worth it unless there was a storm or snow. He'd rather tough it out then waste the gas money.   
  
Still...  
  
He probably hadn't been outside for four minutes when he felt his stomach grumble. He remembered all he had left were a few pack of instant noodles, some fruit, and a buttload of cheese crackers. He was supposed to go grocery shopping that weekend and totally forgot.   
  
Crap...   
 _  
"Well, teaches me to skimp out on errands."_ He thought to himself.   
  
Well, not that he could have, the thought. He wound up taking a coworker's shift who had called out, and he had really needed the money so he took the morning and night shift. Then, of course, was the fact he spent his lunch break still serving customers since no one else was there to pick up the slack, and he had to deal with a same difficult customer every weekend, that old, nearly senile man who h- _"what is up with this wind!?"_  
  
Not too long after he thought that, he felt the wind pick up more strongly than he had ever felt. This wasn't some regular strong wind, he literally nearly skidded and fallen onto his face it was so powerful. He brought his head up, his hood blown off his head and to the side instantly as his ears were assaulted by what was once gentle whistling to what was now powerful gusts that nearly took him off his feet.   
  
He held his glasses down with one hand, standing his ground as best as he could as the wind threatened to blow him right off his feet. Trash and paper flew by him in whirlwinds as his face was buffeted with the cold air. "What the hell?"   
  
It was as if it was all concentrated on him, or at least his direction. Trashcans toppled forward easily, its contents strewn about in every which way. A piece of torn newspaper whisked on by at great speeds and pieces of gravel, dirt and dust came his way. He shielded his eyes as the elements blew by him. It felt like something he'd expect from a blizzard or a storm rather than a formerly rainy day. His fingers felt like ice as they balled up and his teeth clenched as the freezing wind swept around him.  
  
Then, all at once it stopped.   
  
The formerly air-borne trash had landed noisily in the alley, the sound of the wind suddenly gone from his ears as he slowly lowered his arms.   
  
He glanced around at the now cluttered alley, and looked back to see the plants of some back of the buildings had fallen off and onto the pavement, shards of shattered pottery and soil on the ground, surely waiting to be seen by their disgruntled planter.   
  
"Well...that happened."   
  
He turned around and looked forward.   
  
And froze.   
  
At first, he didn't believe it. There was no way he could believe what he was seeing. It was too weird, too strange...   
  
It was a green swirl of air, a little bit taller than him and glowing. It looked like a portal straight made by the best CGI studio, suspended in air.   
  
"What..." was all that came out of his mouth.     
  
He stared at it for a few seconds before taking a step back.   
  
And that's when the world he knew came to a screeching halt.   
  
The wind came back with something fierce as the portal started to glow so bright, his vision blurred.   
  
He tried to turn and run, but the wind was pushing each and every joint in the direction of the swirling anomaly. He could barely lift his foot without feeling the powerful hurricane-like winds pushed him towards it. It occurred to him that the portal was literally  _sucking him towards it._  
  
"Help!" he screamed to the top of his lungs, that seemed to be muffled and drown out by the winds. He might have been yelling into his pillows for similar effect and the lot of good it did for him in that situation. "Help! Can anyone hear me!? Please, help!"   
  
The world ignored him as he felt himself beginning to fall. He used his arms to catch himself, but it only worked for a little as his legs were pulled up into the air against his will. His waist soon followed suit, and he immediately realized that he was going to be sucked into that portal. His arms tried to grasp at anything that could provide leverage, but there was nothing to hold onto but the ground, which provided terrible support.   
  
He felt his hands and entire body leave the ground with nothing but air keeping his afloat as he was pushed back. He screamed, the world become greener and greener as the glow entered the sides of his vision.   
  
In moments, all he could see was green. Green and a round, shrinking window of where he once was, shrinking further from view.   
  
The brightness was everywhere, and grew unbelievably bright. From green, to blue, to pure white.   
  
The last thing he saw was the view of his own hand disappearing from sight before everything around became white noise.   
  


\----- 

He felt the sun on his face and grimaced. With effort, he raised his hand from his chest to block it out. His whole body felt sore and his limbs were as heavy as lead. His back ached and throbbed, not a nice feeling first thing in the morning.

There was no way it was near 11:00 AM yet. He didn't need to wake up just yet. Not to Mrs. Geralds. Not to customers. Not to Terrence. Not to anyone. He was just too whipped. 

He let his arm fall to his side, fully intending to fall back asleep. 

When the back of his hand hit a smooth, hard surface instead of the soft cushions of his bed, he realized something was off. 

He opened his eyes, squinting under the bright light. 

Instead of the off-white fan at the top of the ceiling of his bedroom that was covered in dust, he saw a bright blue ceiling so ridiculously high, he almost confused it for the sky. 

He was suddenly very awake. 

He hurriedly got up from his lying position from the hardwood floor to his feet, his vision going dark from moving too fast. When he was finally able to see straight, his heart dropped. 

He was staring at a rolling chair the size of a  _building._ The wheels easily the size he'd see on semi-trucks, maybe even bigger. The underside of the chair stretched above him like a canopy of a gigantic tree. It was situated to a enormous...desk? Yeah...it was a desk, a desk that could easily fit several houses underneath. 

The light that had hit his face was coming from a window to his left. He glanced and looked at it, the window several stories above his head and big and wide enough to house his apartment complex. It stretched up to the ceiling, with enormous blue drapes to its side. 

Pain in his body instantly forgotten, he took several steps back, only to trip on something. He fell onto his side and rolled over with a groan. It was carpet. Well, almost carpet. There no way strands of carpet could be as high and thick as tall grass. Or tall grass to be dark blue for that matter. 

Standing right back up, he frantically looked around, turning his head in all directions. Everywhere he looked, everything was strange...huge... 

There were books, scattered in a corner, the spines easily more than twice his height, some even three to four times bigger, with several thick enough to reach above his knee or even to his stomach and above his waist. A colorful red and orange statue of a man standing on a gold surface was next to one of the books, with letters that looked so close to Latin, yet different that he couldn't read it. It occurred to him that it wasn't a statue he was looking at, but a  _trophy._

__There was a card, about a long as he was tall a few feet away from him. An image of a blue frog-like dragon was in the picture. It vaguely reminded him of the Pokemon cards he would play with as a child, except in different hues and more suited as a poster board or screen rather than a playing card for a card game.

To his right was a bed, from what he could tell from below. Never would he have seen a bed as ominous until now, it easily being well over one hundred feet long and at  _least_ four stories high. The legs were thicker than most pillars he'd seen, and the covers spilled over to the side like a scalable cliff. Not that he wanted to try it. Or that he thought he could. The bookcase, taller than the clock tower at home, towered over everything, casting a shadow on the basketball-player sized action figures and books.

He was in a room. A bedroom it looked like. A bedroom easily several times larger than a stadium, with everything else inside it also being enormous accordingly. It took him some time to recognize it as a bedroom from his vantage point, but despite everything being blown up in size, he did see it for what it was: a bedroom, probably belonging to either a child or an action figure enthusiast. 

A whimsical thought came to mind at that. 

"Heh...a geek's paradise," he said quietly in a shaky voice, a twitching nervous grin cropping up, "Terrence would love this." 

This was a joke right? An elaborate prank maybe...Or was he going loony in some hospital? 

He jolted in his spot and reached in for his phone. 

He pulled it out and tried to turn it on, holding his finger on the button longer than necessary. 

Unfortunately the screen remained blank, with no sign of life. He then remembered that his phone had died earlier and that he had no charger. 

"Shit!" He yelled, gripping his phone tightly until his hand began to turn red. 

Before he could think of the next course of action, he heard it. 

At first, it only sounded like the low thrum of distant thunder. It went away as quickly as it came before another one sounded off. Then another. And another. 

He could literally hear his own heart in his ears, hammering against his chest as his jaw dropped. With wide eyes, he slowly and shakily turned around to face the titanic white door that stretched up higher than most buildings he had seen. He could hear it...the booming coming from the other side some distance away. It didn't take long for him to put two and two together and realize that whoever lived here was probably just as huge as everything in that room. Huge enough to either squash him flat or swallow him whole. 

He didn't even realize his phone had slid out of his shaking hand as he looked around for a quick hiding spot. The most obvious one seemed like the bed; if the giant was even remotely aware of his existence, then more than likely they would search there. Unfortunately, judging from the frequency of what he realized were booming footsteps, he had no time to contemplate and ran underneath, as far as he could to the wall. He made it just in the nick of time as the immense, nearly impassable door swung open, a gust of air hitting him from behind. He saw a large brown object, twice as high as he was tall with the same area of his living room. He immediately ran to the opposite end of it and pressed his back to it, tentatively looking beyond the corner to see if he had been spotted. 

He felt the footstep this time, hearing the ground...or rather floor, beneath him heave and creak under the immense weight. While he was sure he was a  _relatively_ safe distance from his position under the bed, he could feel some of the shock waves of each step cause the floor to thrum underneath them. 

He could have screamed when he saw a white sneaker-clad foot large enough to fill up most of his bedroom blot out the light, shaking the very foundation under its weight. He brought up one of his hands to clamp onto his mouth, his eyes not once leaving the enormous foot on the opposite side of the bed. 

It lifted up from his view, with another one appearing further away. The giant seemed to be walking away from his hiding spot, and from what he could tell, the being was heading towards the desk. 

A gasp escaped him when something huge fell and hit the ground, causing him to immediately retreat his head back behind his hiding spot. He waited a few moments after hearing the giant...sigh? It sounded distinctly like a sigh to him...but much louder than any sigh he ever heard and much more sonorous. He slowly peeked back out from behind whatever he was using to hide behind, seeing the bottom of a green and black...thing on the floor that wasn't there before. He could only see a little from his view, and the giant was far enough for him to notice the dark blue jeans he was wearing over the shoes. 

He flinched and instinctively whipped his head back as he saw the feet turn in his direction and lift. He turned around so quickly, the glasses on his face slid down a bit. The ground rocking underneath him, he anxiously pressed harder against the wall, biting his lip in terror. The tremors grew stronger and stronger as the feet neared and he was pretty sure the giant was coming for him that moment until he heard the bed creak loudly above him. He looked up to see what was the mattress press down on the springs, as if it were a roof threatening to cave in. 

_"What the hell...what the hell...whatthehellwhatthehellwhatthehell..."_

He jumped when he heard a voice above him. A voice that sounded that it belonged to a child, a young boy perhaps. But just like the sigh, it was booming and somewhat distorted, ringing all around him as though it were coming from the Wizard of Oz instead of a child he'd normally see pop up around their parents that came to the tea shop. 

"I thought I did it right this time...what went wrong?" 

Such a simple sentence sounded very ominous from what he presumed to be a kid that had to be several stories tall judging from his environment. Granted, from his tone, it seemed like he was talking to himself and was unaware of the terrified Leon's presence. He desperately hoped that to be the case. 

He heard rustling above him as the giant seemed to be shifting above him, the mattress creaking insufferably under the motions. Leon felt hot under the collar, and had to force himself to take steady breaths. It was the first time he realized he had been holding his breath the entire time. 

With enormous effort, he had made space in his mind to form some coherency. At least enough coherency to try to plan out some sort of escape plan. 

_"Alright doofus...let's sort this out. This isn't your apartment...well, duh of course it isn't my apartment...I'm in a room that probably took place up on a beanstalk. There was a vortex...that's right! The vortex! That weird-ass shit sent me here! Okay, okay, okay...so I'm here because of a vortex. Seems impossible, but I'm here. My phone is dead...it died yesterday...yesterday? What day is it!? Wait...wait...priorities. There a...kid...I think it's a kid...a kid the size of Godzilla or King Kong or some shit sitting on a bed the size of a football field...I think. He doesn't know where I am."_  

Leon looked in several directions from behind his spot. From a distance, he could see the edge of the door, as thick as tree-trunk. The door was still ajar, with more than plenty of room for him to get through. He slightly relaxed with that realization briefly before he grew even more frightened at the idea that he was planning to escape. One wrong move, and he surmised he'd be crushed or eaten, if not worse. 

_"Relax...relax...he doesn't know I exist. I'm safe...I'm safe. If I can get to the door without him realizing I'm there, I can get away. I can go from there. I just need to be quiet...it's going to be okay, it's going to be o-"_

**CRIK!**

****Leon froze.

The motion above him stopped as well, and for the briefest of moments, there was utter silence until he heard a "Hm?" from above. 

He watched as one of the feet above him stilled before lifting up. It only lasted a moment before the giant placed both feet on the ground, an action that caused Leon to stifle a cry. One knee came crashing down on the opposite side of the bed and Leon was thoroughly convinced that the giant would come for him at that moment. 

Instead of reaching under the bed; however, he saw fingers nearly as long as he was tall reached down for something he couldn't see in the carpet. Two fingers closed in on whatever thing the giant had noticed. With trepidation, he soon realized what it may have been before the giant all but confirmed it. 

Absolutely minuscule between the enormous fingertips was his cellphone, crushed into a horrible mesh of glass, metal and whatever components that made it. 

Did the giant have supernatural hearing? How the hell could he have heard something as small as  _that_  crack? It defied all logic and reason to him. There was no way anyone so huge could hear something like that, could they? 

_"Crap...crap!"_ Leon thought, taking his head away from the sight and pinning himself against the brown wall he was against. This was bad...this was  _really_ bad. 

"What was this?" the giant seemed to ask, and for an instant, Leon thought he was addressing him. 

He heard some movement from behind, the literal shifts in the air as the giant seemed to be doing something he had no way of seeing. 

"A...cellphone? Is this an actual phone?" 

_"Oh hell. Oh crap. Oh dear."_

__The ground suddenly heaved as something unfathomably heavy impacted the ground. He stumbled a bit, but not enough to be seen from his hiding spot.

He began to shake heavily, his heart ready to give out and his mind ready to give in. He didn't budge from his position, too afraid to peek from over. His teeth were clenched and his hands balled up so painfully tight, his nails were digging into his palm. 

"Does that mean...?" The giant said aloud, his voice full of a startling amount of hope. 

_"Oh no...please no...oh God, please no...nonononono..."_

__It was disturbingly quiet for another moment before he heard motion.

He heard and felt something hit the opposite side of the wall and jolt. 

Right before it literally moved away from him so quickly, he nearly lost his balance and managed to catch himself just in time and turned around. 

He was immediately paralyzed with fear. 

Terror-filled green eyes met wide, shocked grayish-blue eyes that locked onto him instantly. 

A gigantic youthful face, with a slightly gaping mouth and black hair that draped from above filled most of his vision. Without a doubt, he knew the being was definitely a child at that moment. 

The freakishly huge boy seemed just as shocked to see him just as he was as shocked to see the giant. But instead of fear and trepidation, his eyes beheld some level of wonderment and awe. Leon couldn't look away, so fearful and sure that he was going to die in moments. 

He managed to jump though when the giant's mouth closed and formed a smile, showing off teeth that could easily chomp him into bits on a whim. 

And, in an excited and ear-shattering voice that terrified him to the core, the child said, "It  _had_ worked!" 

And then Leon screamed.     


	2. Meeting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Leon's filthy language ahead!

Leon still screamed as he turned around from the billboard-sized face and bolted to his right, overwhelmed by the sight.   
  
"Hey!  _Wait!"_ He heard the boy cry out from behind, not that his adrenaline-filled mind comprehended it at first, nor that it mattered in the slightest as his eyes were dead set on the furthest leg of the bed, where he could put some distance between the giant and himself. He felt the wooden ground creak loudly all around him, the floorboards shaking, when he instinctively looked back, and nearly stumbled at the sight of the giant slowly lowering his entire body to the ground.   
  
"Oh  _shit!"_ He yelled as he ran faster, his legs churning with panic and heart clenching painfully with fear. He was running faster than he ever did in his life. Probably enough to garner the attention of a track star had the conditions been right. But as fast as he willed himself to run, it all seemed quite inconsequential when the giant began to reach for him, his long arms easily covering the distance he had crossed in an instant.   
  
With more agility than he thought he ever possessed, he rolled to his right, barely missing the giant's fingertips by millimeters. Gracelessly, yet quickly, he got back to his feet and took off once more. The hand didn't leave though and turned to try to go for him once more, but this time, he was out of its reach, having ran close to the wall on the other side of the bed.   
  
Leon didn't stop running, however. If anything, he was inspired to run even faster and harder. He was having trouble breathing as he realized just how too close for comfort he had been to being grabbed up. He stayed close to the bottom trim of the wall, closing in on the furthest pole of the bed, easily as thick and tall as a tower. He looked in the direction of the giant and let out an undignified, muffled squeal at the sight of the arm sweeping into his direction, a hand large enough to engulf him in its entirety clutching towards him. The hand came down several feet away from him, the floor groaning as the fingers pressed against it.     
  
Leon had made it to the pole, getting behind it and realizing the space between it and the wall were almost as wide as two double doors. The arm retracted, from out of view as Leon pressed his whole body apprehensively against the leg of the bed. He looked over to see the boy frown a bit before pressing himself further onto the ground.   
  
The twenty-two year old gasped as he saw the boy crawl under the bed, arms shuffling forward in his direction.   
  
Quickly realizing how horribly inadequate his hiding spot had became, he peeled away from the cold metal and ran again from under the bed, in the wide openness of the expansive bedroom. He shielded his eyes from the bright light that shone above him through the window far above, running across the reflected, inverted squares of its shadow. The sheer vulnerability of his situation came down on him like a volley of bullets. He could feel his throat close up as he realized that everything around him, as massive to him as they were, would provide either poor cover for an entity who could easily look over them or move them. Aside from the monumentally huge bookcase that was too close against the wall for him to fit through, as well as the desk and dresser on the opposite side of the room, there was nothing there that the giant couldn't simply push aside.   
  
He heard the giant shifting loudly and looked back to see him retreating from underneath the bed. He looked behind himself to see the giant looking at him, looking slightly offended. "Hold on...come back!"   
  
Leon immediately turned back around and changed course. He needed to get to the door. There was no place inside the room he could get to in order to sufficiently stay out of the giant's reach in time.   
  
Making a beeline for the open space between the door, he huffed urgently, his lungs beginning to hurt and he began to overheat underneath his hoodie. He found himself back into the knee-high carpet of the rug and almost lost his balance once again. Unlike the ease of traversing on the smooth, wooden surface under the bed, he found himself constantly tripping and stumbling among the cotton reeds below him. He could hear himself hyperventilating a bit as he realized just how much farther the door seemed to be.   
  
The ground shook again and he looked back once more to see the boy having completely withdrew from the bed and getting to his feet, looking incredibly imposing now in full sight. The boy, moving faster than he expected anything... _anyone_  so massive could, took a few steps in his direction, minimizing the distance within seconds. The giant's footsteps violently shook the ground the closer he got and soon he was looming over him, blocking the light from above, body enshrouded in shadow.      
  
"Shit shit shit  _shit!"_ Leon hissed, regretting ever looking back as he continued running for the door in a last bid to escape. His legs ached and his vision began to blur from the strain on his body. He hadn't gone for a run since high school, and it showed as his stamina began to give out little by little. His movements began to slowly become sloppy, and yet the door still remained oh so very far away.   
  
It was only inevitable he wouldn't get far when a colossal shoe crashed down several feet in front of him, causing him to fall onto his back with a strangled cry. He quickly turned onto his stomach and tried to bear crawl to the opposite side when an enormous knee blocked off his other route. He couldn't even manage to get to his feet fully in time when he felt something large and startling warm begin to press against his back. Trunk like fingers began to wrap around him and, before he even had the chance to take one more step, closed around him completely, only leaving one arm and his head from outside the fist. He couldn't budge at all against the restricting appendages that pressed against him uncomfortably, his free arm pushing against the the base of his index finger, soft and cushiony as leather but far too sturdy, proving his attempts to free himself futile.   
  
He couldn't catch his breath when he felt himself lifted up, his heart left far below him. He braced himself as the ground grew more and more distant each nanosecond as he rose high into the air. He saw the formerly bent knee lift from the ground and it occurred to him that the giant was standing to full height.   
  
His head was still spinning when he stopped rising. When the world began to settle down, he felt the hand turn and the fingers unfurl around him, causing him to drop backwards onto the giant's palm. He heaved in and out, exhausted. With a grunt, he managed to prop himself up onto his elbows.   
  
A pair of window-sized eyes were bearing down on him, shining brightly. He could see his frightened reflection in each pupil, glasses askew and mouth agape. His face was so close, it was hard to take it all in at once...way too big. The boy's mouth was set in an open smile that seemed to grow wider than Leon could reach. He involuntarily backed away as far as he could from the face, right into the boy's fingers that curled behind him. He dared to peek to his side and looked down, the carpeted floor several stories below. He felt sick.   
  
"I can't believe it...it actually worked!" The boy said directly in front of him, causing him to wince and bring his hands to his ears at the sheer volume. Realizing his mistake, the giant spoke a much softer yet still loud, "Oops...sorry."   
  
Leon felt the hand drop a bit and he found himself at around chest level, still far too high to risk jumping without dying.   
  
"You're a Terran, aren't you?" The giant asked while tilting his head, the black hair on his head moving rather majestically with the simple motion. "From Terra, right?"   
  
Leon said nothing. His mouth could barely form any coherent words, let alone be able to answer his question. However, the giant glanced up away from him, as if looking into space for a moment.   
  
"Oh right...you Terrans don't call it Terra, do you? I think it's called... _Ee-arth?_ No... _Earth!"_ the giant exclaimed before looking back down at him, _"_ Earth, right?"   
  
Leon just stared...blanching at the realization that the giant was actually addressing him. His eyes frantically looked in all directions before looking back at the giant, who continued to beam down on him expectantly.   
  
The giant's smile wavered slightly. "Earth...right...?" He asked more slowly.   
  
There was silence for a moment, with the giant still staring down on him.   
  
The giant's smile faded away a bit, and Leon immediately had believed the giant was going to grow angry. Instead, the boy just raised an eyebrow and gave an unsure smile.    
  
"H-hey...you okay? Can you understand me? I thought I had heard you speak English earlier. Swears...but English."   
  
Leon closed his mouth and, fearful that the giant would grow impatient, fervently nodded his head.   
  
The child perked right up, absolutely glowing. "So you  _do_ understand me?"   
  
Again, Leon nodded, swallowing air.   
  
"What a relief! I thought for a moment I grabbed up a Terran I wouldn't be able to talk to. I'd have to tackle on language magic, and even I would have to take some time to learn that. And from what I read, your world has  _thousands_ of languages! Going through each one to figure out which one you speak...that'd take forever!"   
  
 _Magic...?_ That was the word Leon picked up on immediately. Suddenly, everything and nothing made sense: the portal that brought him here, the bedroom that could fit a neighborhood, and the sheer size of the giant kid in front of him...it was the only thing that could explain all this, and yet, it seemed so preposterous...so abstractly childish...   
  
"I tried the spell so many times, trying to figure out what went wrong and here you are! A Terran right in front of my own eyes! And here I was, about to give up on it and let Auntie Renice get me a dog or cat or pixie. Looks like she doesn't need to, does she?"   
  
Leon still said nothing, not that he could. It was at that moment that the giant seemed to finally pick up on the human's trembling body and absolute terror on his face. The smile instantly disappeared and he extended his hand a bit away from himself.   
  
"Hey...don't look so scared. I'm not going to hurt you, I promise." The giant said lifting up a finger from his opposite hand, "There's no need to be afraid of me...really."   
  
The giant, slowly and carefully, extended his finger to Leon, who pressed his back into the fingers behind him and instinctively brought his arms up to his face in a feeble effort to protect himself. The huge fingertip of the giant hand landed lightly on top of his head, moving side to side slow enough to not hurt his neck muscles. The giant only did it for a few seconds before the other hand withdrew entirely from view. It didn't serve to calm Leon in the least.    
  
"C'mon...please say something...anything...don't look at me like that."   
  
Leon stared at the giant, eyes not wavering from his. Dressed in a long-sleeved white shirt under an open, button-down, dark gray shirt, jeans and sneakers, he looked, in all respect, to the likes of a normal ten or eleven year old boy. He'd look like the type of kid he'd run into in a suburban house, not a giant he'd expect at the top of a beanstalk. He sounded like one too, even though he said nonsensical things and his voice sounded like it was coming from a high quality loud speaker than a pair of actual lungs. It was incredibly uncanny and disturbing to think that what should be a normal looking kid had at the very  _least_ ninety feet on him...from what he could tell. Frighteningly too huge for any living thing resembling a human being should be, let alone a child.   
  
Leon took a shaky breath in and out, finally able to somehow get his mouth working once more. "P-p-please..."   
  
The giant looked more attentive, waiting for him to continue. "Please...?"   
  
"P-please...p-put...put me down."   
    
The giant looked surprised for a moment, but nodded. "Uh, sure thing...hold on."   
  
The giant turned around and began to walk, a motion that jarred him enough for him to make a grab to hold onto the giant's thumb. He looked back up to see that the giant was heading for the monolithic desk. Stopping in front of it, the giant lowered his hand down to the top, next to a thick book that had letters written in some peculiar fashion. Leon crawled out of his hand immediately, getting to his unsteady feet. He watched as the giant pulled the chair back and sat down before pulling himself in. Even sitting, the boy rose high above him.   
  
"Sorry about that. I was just really, really excited. I'm just shocked everything worked. I actually have a Terran right here in my room! This is so awesome!"   
  
The giant crossed his arms onto the desk in front of him, causing Leon to take a few steps back. "My name's Coen!"   
  
The giant, now with a name, gestured around his bedroom. "And this is my room. I live with my aunt, and I'm going to turn eleven in two months." Smiling brightly, he then said, "And I'll be your new owner."   
  
Leon's mind screamed at him in alarm, but a part of him was flabbergasted at the giant's last statement.  _"What!?"  
  
_ "U-um...say wh-what now?"   
  
The gigantic child repeated himself jauntily, "I'll be your new owner! Don't worry, I'll take good care of you. We used to have ha-"   
  
"W-w-w-wait a minute...I...uh...I... _owner!?"  
  
_ "Yep," the giant told him cheerfully with a nod, "You can call me master Coen, actually. Well...I don't know about that, it sounds weird when its sounded aloud. Waaaaay too formal. Even Mr. Loriscalo doesn't like being called Master, even though he's my tutor. And the servants stopped calling me master when I had asked them to too. I kind of prefer just Coen."   
  
Beyond the multiple layers of fear, an indignant spirit rose up, and Leon's vocal chords finally became less tense. Despite his mind screaming against him, he said in a voice that sounded slightly braver than he actually was, "I'm not a pet."   
  
"Hm?" the giant...Coen's face became confused as he rose an eyebrow.   
  
"I-I...," Leon said, body tensing under the attention of the boy's whose body encompassed the majority of his peripheral vision, "I am not a p-pet. I'm a human. A h-human being, n-not a pet."   
  
"Of course you're a pet," Coen said in a matter of fact manner. Leon's heart dropped at how casual the boy sounded of his own proclamation. "Why wouldn't you be? I mean, I remember reading Terrans are hard to come by ever since the gate in Talsimo closed over a hundred years ago, but you're a pet. Terrans have always been pets."   
  
Leon was absolutely stupefied. He couldn't believe what he was hearing and was sure his legs would give out any moment. What he was hearing sounded like utter  _bull._              
  
"That..." he said, surprised at the fact that he was able to even articulate without stuttering on the first word. "That's fu-... _screwed_ up beyond belief!"   
  
Taking a deep breath, he forced his racing heart to calm down, which only worked slightly. "My...my name is Leon. I have a  _life._ Back at home. On  _Earth._  I'm..." In the calmest voice he could muster, he said, "I'm a  _person."  
  
_ The two looked each other in total silence, with Leon doing the best he could not to shy away from the giant. Even though he barely managed to put up a calm facade, he was inwardly panicking and the thoughts of how Coen would violently do away with him creeped up into his mind.   
  
Coen just stared down at him before letting out a small,  _"snrk!"_ before bringing his hand to his mouth to stifle a few giggles.   
  
Leon did  _not_ expect  _that._  
  
Coen managed to gain control of himself quickly, letting out a few giggles that echoed all around Leon. "I'm so glad I did that spell! Terrans are so funny and awesome. Is this normal for your species? If it is, that's hilarious!"   
  
Leon didn't know what he found more disturbing: Coen's reaction or the implications of his reaction.   
  
So...apparently humans, in which this Coen boy seemed to insist were called Terrans, weren't considered people in...wherever here was. The thought made him utterly nauseous. Had his stomach not been empty, he was pretty sure he would have vomited. This child...this giant child...who, if it weren't for the fact he was about twenty times the size of any ten year old he ever met, looked human in all aspects. Face, arms, legs, torso, fingers...they were all huge and gigantic, but from what he could tell, he would have looked normal had it not been for his size.   
  
Coen went on. "I summoned you here actually. It was pretty tricky. Spells dealing in dimensions and reality are hard to do. It took  _foreeeeever_ to get it right. The book had some mistakes in it too, I think. I had to make some adjustments and everything to perform the spell correctly. I tried really hard and thought nothing happened for the longest time each time I tried. I even did a spell to increase my hearing and sight to make sure I didn't accidentally squish one. That's tricky too, you know. There a couple of spells and potions to increase your senses, but all at once and not just one or two. I had to figure that out myself too. It should wear off in by tonight though. I hate hearing how much louder everything is, like bugs and birds and stuff...ugh."   
  
"You...you brought me here?" Leon asked in a quiet voice. "To...t-to...be your  _pet?"_    
  
"Yeah," Coen confirmed with a smile, "I'll take the best of care of you! So don't worry!"   
  
Bull... _Bull...  
  
"Bullshit!" _Leon yelled, his anger rising above the copious amount of fear enough for him to cry out audaciously at the giant in front of him, whose eyes went wide at the use of crude language coming from the human in front of him. Leon didn't stop, eyes blazing. "Top of the line  _bullshit!_ What gives  _you,_ of all people, the right to snatch me from my home...my world, just so I could be your pet? I'm a person, dammit! With a life...a family. I work for my living, have goals...dreams for the future. Hell, I'm over twice your age, for crying out loud! You can't just take me from everything...everyone I've ever known and keep me here! You don't have the  _right._ I don't know what kind of crappy magic you're pulling, but if you're able to get me here, I know you're able to get me back."   
  
Daring to glare into the boy's eyes, he enunciated each syllable slowly and deliberately. "Take me back home... _now."_    
  
Coen just stared at him, clearly shocked that the human he had just summoned had spoke to him like that. He blinked quickly, as if trying to comprehend that such a small creature was capable of speaking in such a manner at someone so much bigger than he was.   
  
Leon only managed to stay firm for a few seconds, but was quickly reminded of his position when Coen lifted a hand up and reached towards him. His fury left him in a breeze and he suddenly cried out as Coen brought a finger towards him. Leon immediately imagined himself being flicked off the desk and onto the floor, an assured death. He tried to back away but tripped over something and fell onto his backside painfully. As the hand neared, he scrunched his eyes closed, preparing for a painful reminder of his insolence.   
  
He felt something lightly bonk him on his head.   
  
He was forced to open his eyes as the finger hovered above him, and rubbed his head. The tap on his head surprised him more than hurt.    
  
"Wow," Coen said with a slight hint of amusement,  _"Laaaaanguage..._ If Aunt Renice had heard that, she'd crush you for sure!" He brought his hand away from the top of his head and placed it behind him, forming a leathery wall with his palm. "We'll definitely need to work on that."   
  
Leon just sat there, motionless. Everything he just said had no effect on the boy. He had might as well had been speaking to no one. It was like a lowly servant making demands from nobility. Or like a young, naive child trying to make demands to a parent. The irony wasn't lost on him at all.    
  
He looked down to his feet, feeling somewhat lost (both figuratively and physically) and defeated. It was obvious the boy wouldn't really take him seriously as a fellow, intelligent being. And it was made clear there was no use making demands and trying to appeal to him as an equal.   
  
"But...I am a person..." Leon whispered to himself, despair slowly beginning to settle in.   
  
It seemed that either Coen didn't hear him...but more than likely was ignoring him as he seemed to be in deep thought, his eyes staring past him. One hand went up to prop his head, a finger tapping against his cheek. Leon, too caught up in his disbelief of the situation, somehow managed to become less aware of the leaden blue eyes on him.   
  
 _"There is no way I'm awake right now...I'm asleep...I must be asleep...this is all a dream...just a dream...there's no way th-"_  
  
"I got it!"   
  
Leon was more than startled by the giant's voice, and lurched when he felt the hand push against his back with the giant's other hand coming towards him. Coen gently shifted him into his palms and he found himself in the middle of giant's cupped hands, slowly lifted up towards the boy's face.   
  
"Clip."   
  
Leon blinked, confused. "Wh...wha...?"   
  
"You're name is Clip!" Coen said, sounding proud of himself. "Since...that's what you tripped over."   
  
Leon turned around on his hands and knees to peek over to the desk, and sure enough, was a giant paperclip near the spot he was formerly sitting in. Leon turned back around, shaking his head.   
  
"I already told you my name. It's Leon." he told him, his voice weary, yet an annoyed infliction still evident. "It's Leon."   
  
Coen shook his head. "Nah...I already know a Leon. That's the same name as one of my tutor's sons. It'd get too confusing. I'm calling you Clip."   
  
"But...that's not my name." Leon rebutted weakly. "My name is Leon."   
  
This time, Leon was sure Coen was ignoring him as he stood up from his chair without warning, causing him to press against the connected palms for the sudden change in altitude.   
  
"Let's go grab something to eat, Clip." Coen said, already using the new name he came up with for him, "I remember reading that Terrans can eat the same things we can. Well...mostly. Let's get you something really delicious. I know I'm hungry. I bet you are too. Then, I'll show you around my home. Aunt Renice is still out, so it's just you, me, Mr. Renovan and Ms. Aria. And Ms. Aria will probably freak if she sees you. So if you come across her, you need to be quiet. She's the lady with the big earrings. Don't be too out there. Do you understand?"        
  
Leon was too exhausted to refuse, and just meekly nodded, groaning audibly.   
  
Apparently, that was enough for the boy as he walked towards the door. Shifting Leon into one hand, he opened the door fully and stepped out with his reluctant, new pet in tow.   
  
As the giant boy closed the door behind himself, Leon reminded himself dismally how much he hated Tuesdays. 


	3. Scope

Upon seeing outside the bedroom, Leon was finally able to get a true grasp on how scaled up this world was.   
  
They were in a hallway that seemed to stretch on and on, far enough that things further down began to blur from his point of view. It was wide enough to encompass highways with plenty of room to spare, with multiple, gigantic doors on each side. A chandelier, easily bigger than most houses, hung further ahead past an oak banister, somehow not clashing with the marble floor.   
  
As Coen continued to move quickly, at a speed that made him feel like he would suddenly be propelled forward and plummet off his hand to the hard wood floor far, far below, he had managed to get a few, passing glimpses of the decor. There was a vase that looked like it was made with all the gold housed in Fort Knox sitting on a tremendous pedestal. Paintings that were big enough that they reminded him of the size of art pieces he'd see on the sides of buildings adorned the navy blue walls. One particular picture, a man and woman embracing each other, was so immense that it had to be as big, give or take a few feet, as Coen himself. He couldn't focus on them, his attention elsewhere, primarily on gripping onto Coen's index finger for some stability.   
  
When they arrived to the cylindrical staircase, Coen paused. He glanced down at Leon before looking at the staircase, as if contemplating something.   
  
After a second, he said aloud to himself, "Nah...I won't try that yet while I have you."   
  
Leon suddenly felt very alarmed.   
  
 _"What!? What does he mean!? What won't he try!?"  
  
_ Before he could ask, Coen took his first step down the stairs, causing Leon to cry out. The sudden drop made him wrap his arms around the enormous index finger even tighter, as Coen took another step down, much more slowly. After a few more steps, it dawned on him that Coen was trying not to jostle him too much, but with each step, he was unavoidably swung a bit in the boy's palm. He was beginning to feel a headache coming on. However, after a few steps, he felt something press onto his back, as if holding him in place. It was Coen's thumb, larger than the small of his back and securing him against his palm. While the strangeness of the feeling didn't leave him, a small piece of him could appreciate the fact that the boy was wary of him to some degree.   
  
When they made it to the bottom of the stairs, Leon concluded, from comparing Coen's massive height to the fanciful environment, that the house was  _big._ Like mansion-sized big. At least in relation to Coen; he couldn't fathom the true size of such a place from his view, especially from the ground. Small towns could probably fit inside. Certain items such as the hallway end tables and lamps served to remind him of how abysmally small his chances of escaping were in the first place. Getting down the first stair would have been a feat in and of itself; getting down the stairway and traversing through the rooms would have been close to impossible even if he'd made it that far.   
  
Quicker than believed, thanks to Coen's long strides, they made it to a kitchen of epic proportions. A chrome, steel mountain of a refrigerator was situated between two long, white counters that held a knife set, a microwave, toaster, and a sink the size of a pool. There was an oven situated further into the kitchen and a breakfast bar in the very center, three tall, gray and white stools on one side of it, with a decorative food basket in the center, along with a light green cloth underneath and three, blue cups. The kitchen reminded him of something out of one of those high-classed cooking shows, with overhead, dangling lights, jars of spices, fruits and plants sitting on a ledge above the sink, and several small, weirdly-shaped sculptures that gave it a modern, rustic look. He would have admired it more had the size of everything not have been so intimidating.   
  
Coen stopped at the breakfast bar and gently set him down. He staggered a bit before looking up to see Coen saunter towards the refrigerator. When Coen opened the door, he could see the contents of the fridge: basically anything that could be found in a regular fridge, except filled to the brim with vegetables, fruits, meats, condiments, drinks...so much of it and definitely more than enough to feed his entire neighborhood for weeks, if not years on end. Seeing Coen stand on his toes, a rather scary realization occurred to him.   
  
While still a giant, Coen was a  _child._ A child with plenty of room to grow. In comparison to everything around him, he was still relatively small, having to reach above his head several times and strain a bit to see what was above him. After all, most household items were made for adults. He recalled him talking about having an aunt, as well as two other people whose names he didn't register to remember living here, and from what he could tell from how he described them, they were more than likely full-grown adults. He looked to his left, a blue cup easily twice his size, blue and translucent sat several feet away from him. Probably...no, definitely having been used by those adults.   
  
Exactly, how big were the giants of this world and, more importantly, what would they do if they found him?   
  
He barely had time to dwell on that when he heard Coen close the door of the fridge, the sound nearly deafening, before walking towards him, with one hand full of grapes and the other with a halved, cold-cut sandwich in a partially opened plastic bag. He flinched as the giant pulled out the chair, the legs screeching far below before taking a seat and placing each item on each side of Leon.   
  
"So Clip, I brought a sandwich and a couple of grapes. You're really, really small so I know you won't be able to eat much. I can break off anything for you if you want me to. Do you like grapes or sandwiches? It's turkey by the way." He said, smiling down at him.  
  
Leon cringed a little before looking at the food. Each grape was bigger than a watermelon, plump and bright green. The sandwich, thick enough that he could sit on top of it, was filled with lettuce as thick and long as a sheet, turkey meat probably derived from a turkey several times bigger than an elephant, and seasoning that stung his nose a bit.   
  
"It's Leon..." he muttered under his breath, "And...I guess I'll try a grape. And...uh...c-can I have some water?" While he was hungry, he was much more parched, having exhausted his lungs from his failed escape attempt and furious outcry towards a child who paid it no heed.   
  
Coen brought a finger to brush the top of Leon's head, the sudden action  making him flinch violently. "Sure! Let me just see if I can find something for you to use to drink out of."   
  
With that, Coen stood back up and slid off the bar stool, sending up a tremor through the surface of the island he stood on.   
  
While Coen was searching for something that could be an equivalent to a cup, he took the liberty to look around himself for some way to get out in the future. He knew he was in no way, shape or form in any condition to make a break for it at the moment, having spent all his energy only a few minutes earlier and with Coen completely aware of his position and fully capable of catching him effortlessly. Also, he noticed as he walked around the island top, there was no way to the ground; he was suspended dozens of feet in the air without any rope or tether like object that would aid him down.   
  
Plus, the thought of being stepped on by a child didn't really appeal to him in the slightest.   
  
"Aha! Here we go!" he heard Coen say triumphantly, and looked to see him close a drawer from what had to be a city block away. As Coen walked by the island, he saw what was pinched between his fingers: a silver thimble. Coen went to the sink and ran the faucet, a waterfall of water pouring through it as he quickly filled the thimble before turning it faucet back and walked back towards the island. Placing the bucket-sized thimble of water in front of Leon before sitting down. Leon watched him reach towards the grapes and pluck one off the stem of the vine before offering it to him.   
  
"Here you go, take it." He said enthusiastically, his resonant voice echoing around him from above. There was no way he was going to get used to hearing a child's voice at such a great magnitude.   
  
Looking at the thimble with water rippling side to side, he slowly bent down to sit, crossing his legs as he observed it for a moment, as if suspicious. While he was pretty sure it was regular water, the surrealism of his situation didn't put his mind at ease, and trying anything from a different world, whether Coen deemed it alright or not, seemed like a bad idea. However, his sore, dry throat protested against his skepticism, and he knew he couldn't go without sustenance but for so long, so he allowed for himself to get on his knees and go for it.   
  
The thimble looked heavy, and with water swishing to and fro near the top, threatening to spill, it was too precarious to try to lift it. Instead, he cupped his hands under the cool water and brought it to his mouth, taking a huge gulp. The soothing coolness felt heavenly in his throat as he went for more. He paused between gulps to take breaths before drinking again. Some water dribbled down the side of his mouth as he finished, in which he wiped it away with a sleeve.         
  
After finishing drinking out of the thimble, he went for the nearby grape. The surface felt smooth and rubbery, but with some effort, he managed to puncture it, getting juices onto his hand. He pulled out his hand, pulling out some of the inside of the grape which he bit into. It was a bit sour at first, causing his tongue to and mouth to pucker a bit before the sweetness settled in. Swallowing, he dug more into the grape with his bare hands (for lack of utensils), relishing in the taste.   
  
He head a giggle from above and looked up to see Coen, whose head was propped between his arms, looking down at him, grinning from ear to ear and eyes shining with mirth. The sandwich to his left was sitting on the plastic bag, in one piece.    
  
He suddenly found himself empathizing with a hamster, eating right out of its owners hands. Fully reliant and dependent on its master's willingness to provide nourishment.   
  
He lost his appetite within seconds.   
  
His arm dropped from his mouth and he stood up, walking away from the leering eyes that followed his every moves and the partially eaten grape and water.   
  
"Hey," he heard Coen say, "What's wrong? You don't like it?"   
  
"Nothing's wrong..." he said, then cringed when he realized how much of a lie that was before making an amendment, "...with the food, anyway."   
  
"Are you full?"   
  
"No, I..." Leon sighed heavily before turning around to meet the giant's worried gaze. "Where am I? This world, I mean."   
  
"Oh..." Coen brought his hand to his forehead. "Can't believe I forgot to tell you. I forgot you Terrans don't know about other realms, do you?"   
  
"Apparently not..." Leon muttered quietly. "At least about ones with giant brats that make adults there pets. That would have been  _soooo_  good to know."  
  
"Right..." Coen said, eyeing the small human in front of him, causing Leon to shrink back. The sarcastic tone wasn't lost on the boy, and Leon briefly remembered about the boy's enhanced hearing. "Hey...I'd watch what you'd say around  _'giant brats'_  if I were you. Especially your new owner." The boy lifted a finger tip above Leon's head as if to signify his point.   
  
"Y-yeah..." Leon said warily, instantly regretting his remark, "My b-bad."     
  
"To answer your question," Coen went on chuckling, removing the finger away from Leon to ease his nerves. "Mira."   
  
"Huh?" Leon asked, going from scared to dumbfounded.  
  
"This place...this realm is called Mira."   
  
"And this whole magical, Harry Potter shebang? What's going on with that?"   
  
Coen tilted his head in confusion. "What's a Harry Potter?"   
  
"No, no...that's not important." Leon straightened up, "I mean, this whole magic deal."   
  
"Magic de- _oh!_  That's right! You Terrans don't have magic on Earth, right? So you guys have no idea about spells."   
  
Coen brought his hands above the table, with one of them reaching for a few grapes. "I can't even imagine a world without magic. Sounds like it would suck. But yeah, anyone can learn magic here. It's in our blood. I mean, I've heard of people that aren't able to do much magic beside telekinesis, but that's like a very,  _very_ small amount of people. But those people become good at alchemy and potions I heard."   
  
Coen twiddled the grapes between his fingers as he spoke before letting them go.   
  
Leon's mouth could have dropped to the bottom when he saw the grapes only slightly lower before being completely suspended in mid-air. Leon took a step back, peeking to the left and the right, as if to see if there were any strings attached, despite how unlikely it seemed.   
  
"H-h-how did you do that?" Leon asked, voice filled with a sense of wonderment he hadn't felt in years.   
  
Coen smiled down at him. "Like I said...magic."   
  
Coen brought his hands on either side of Leon, causing him to back away from the encroaching fingers. However, the fingers never came touched him, and soon, he felt a tingling sensation in his skin.   
  
Then Leon felt himself lifting, as if the air itself was pushing him upwards. Leon's eyes became even wider when he felt his feet leave the surface underneath him, dangling a foot above the air before rising higher and higher. He swung his arms about at the weird feeling; there was nothing to hold onto and he was rising in the air without anything to grab onto. The feeling was so foreign and unreal...so terrifying.   
  
"W-wait! Coen! What are you doing!?" Leon's voice rose higher in pitch, rising higher and higher until he was leveled with the floating grapes. He actually had to look  _down_ to meet Coen's amused face.   
  
"I already told you... _magic."_     
  
Leon felt himself bobbing in the air lightly, cushioned by light wind and feeling as though he'd drop at any second.   
  
Before he could ask to be let down, Coen cupped his hands below him and brought them up until he was lying in them. The moment his back touched the boy's palms, he felt the tingling sensation vanish, and he sunk into the warm flesh a bit.   
  
Coen brought Leon closer to his face, which had a wide grin. "That's basic stuff. Almost anybody can do that."   
  
"I see..." Leon whispered, heart still racing. "That's incredible."   
  
Coen placed Leon back onto the breakfast bar before reaching up to pick a grape and plop it into his mouth. Leon just looked up at the grapes that were about thirty-something feet above his head. He was just up there with nothing holding him. There were no illusions, no wands, no magical words even said. If that was basic stuff...what was the true extent of the magical properties of this world? From what Coen had said (and  _proven),_ he could conduct a spell to breach dimensions and enhance his hearing to superhuman levels. And apparently, there were even spells to learn different languages too. He wondered if English wasn't his first language.  
  
"Say...exactly how much magic do you know?" Leon asked, watching him eat the melon-sized grapes with ease. Those boulder-like teeth made him nervous, the thought of him being chewed up between them made him shudder.   
  
Coen didn't seem to notice his discomfort and he swallowed the remains of the grape. Looking pleased with himself, he told him, "A lot. More than anyone my age I bet."   
  
"What do you mean?" Leon inquired, truly curious.   
  
"I can use magic whenever, and however I want."   
  
Leon raised an eyebrow. "I don't follow. I thought you said almost anyone can use magic here."   
  
"Yeah," Coen said while leaning back in the chair, "But most people have a limit. You see, most people can only use magic a few times a day but need to recharge. Kind of like..." Coen paused, as if looking for something to compare it to, "...solar-powered things. Or like when you go to sleep. Or a battery. Use too much and you'll be worn out and incapable of using magic at all. And some spells require a ton of energy. And a lot of knowledge."   
  
"So, does that mean...that stamina basically equals magical potential, right?" Leon asked, as that seemed to be the greatest answer.    
  
"Nope, not at all. You could be an athlete and be terrible magic or be the laziest person in the world and be great with magic."   
  
Coen brought up three fingers. "Magic potential usually depends on three things: Skill, age and genetics."   
  
Leon blinked, impressed. "You're...pretty smart for ten years old. I...didn't even expect you to understand or use any big words."              
  
"Like I said," Coen said, obviously flattered, "Some spells require a lot of knowledge. And I'm the smartest kid you'll ever meet." With the widest grin, he said, "I might be smarter than you."   
 _  
"But definitely not the most humble."_  Leon thought to himself. Aloud, he said, "Uh huh...I would need evidence for that. But like you were saying: those three things?"   
  
"Yeah, so those three things: skill is kind of self-explanatory. Hard spells need a lot skill to be done. You can't do big spells without having control over it. Like playing with fire. Age is a big one. Most kids my age only know telekinesis, low level elemental magic, and maybe some really low-level illusion magic. But even then, they can only do those stuff maybe once or twice a day. The older you get, the more magical potential and the more skill you have."   
  
Coen pointed to himself. "And then, there's genetics. Some people, no matter how hard they try, will never be good at magic while others can have so much potential. You're born into your limits. It's just the way it is."   
  
"So...I'm guessing that means I won't be able to use any magic, huh?" Leon asked, already knowing the answer to that question.   
  
"Don't worry Clip," Coen cooed, bringing up a finger to pat the 22-year-old on the head. "There's no need for you to learn magic, even if you could. I'd be able to supply all your magical  _neeeeeeeds."_  
  
Groaning, Leon batted at the finger. "It's Leon."   
  
"But yeah, magic is...innate, I guess." Coen went on, ignoring Leon's last statement as he continued to pet his head for a few more seconds before lowering his hand away, "But if you ever want to watch me do some more magic, you can always ask me."   
  
"Speaking of which, you were saying you could use magic whenever and however you want."   
  
"Yep!" the giant exclaimed, a bit too loudly for Leon's ears, "You see, I'm not like most people. I know a lot of spells and can use a lot of magic. More than almost any other kids. More than almost any adults. I probably know how to do hundreds of spells actually. I've even learned several arcane spells too!"   
  
"So...I'm guessing you're basically a magical prodigy, am I right?"   
  
"You  _could_ say that," Coen said smugly, eyes glinting, "I mean, everyone else does. Mr. Loriscalo told me I'm one of a kind and the best student he's ever taught. And he's a one hundred and ten year old archmage. Plus..."   
  
Leaning in, Coen took up more and more of Leon's peripheral vision as he bored down him. "I was able to use warping magic...to get you here. That's one of the hardest things to learn on the planet. I don't think even the Wizards of Valhime can do since the gate closed."   
  
Leon took a few seconds to digest that information before letting out a noncommittal, "Huh."   
  
 _"'Huh!?'_ What do you mean, 'huh?'" Coen leaned his face back, his mouth pinched into a small frown. He sounded almost offended. "That's super impressive, right? I mean, you're looking at one of the best mages on the planet! Don't you believe me?"   
  
Leon exhaled. "Well, it  _is_ impressive and all that, from how you make it out anyway. But keep in mind, I'm from a world  _without_ magic. I have nothing...well, no one to compare your abilities to except characters in movies and books. And, trust me, after you had me the air, I believe everything you said. So you don't need to prove it. And plus..."   
  
Leon pointed to the giant child, whose eyes nearly went cross-eyed focusing on his relatively microscopic finger, "You stole me from my world and plan to keep me here as a pet." His eyes narrowed. "Can't really appreciate your abilities if you use it for purposes like that."   
  
Coen's head rose,  _"Pssh!_  I've only had you for a few minutes and your already  _this_  upset? I told you, I'll take good care of you, didn't I?"   
  
"You act as though I need someone to take care of me." Leon snarled.  
  
One of Coen's hands appeared and swept him into the air without warning. Leon cried out as he found himself unable to acclimate to the sudden g-forces and found himself a bit disoriented. Not enough for him to not notice Coen peering down on him.   
  
"Look at how small you are," Coen told him gently and quietly as if trying to soothe a frightened mouse. "You wouldn't be able to survive on your own. You'd always be in danger. You'd be stepped on, eaten or killed in a storm. You do need me to take care of you."   
  
"On the contrary," Leon said, voice hard and layered with annoyance, "I'm regular-sized. At least where I'm from. Self sufficient.  _You..._ on the other hand, are the reason why I'm in any danger. What if you accidentally stepped on me? Or even broke a bone?"   
  
Coen scoffed. "I'm not clumsy enough to get you killed, Clip. I'm really careful."   
  
"Accidents happen," Leon stated, slowly rising to his feet on the uneven surface of Coen's palm. He took a moment to steady himself before meeting the boy in the eye. "And all it takes is one slip up. If you return me back to Earth now, I won't have to worry about that."   
  
"Why? You don't trust me?" Coen asked teasingly, only half joking.   
  
"No...to be honest," Leon began to say before he looked away, a pit forming in his stomach, "I'm...I'm terrified of you."   
  
Coen's face fell a bit, shocked at the blatant honesty. Leon could sense that he had actually hurt his feelings a bit from his softened gaze. But it was the truth. And he felt no guilt admitting it.   
  
Staring at the tiny human in his hand for a moment, he closed his eyes and sighed before looking back at him.   
  
"I promise, then...I'll give you no reason to fear me or distrust me. How's that sound?" Coen asked sincerely.   
  
"Sounds heavenly," Leon said with mock warmth, "You could start by returning me back to my world."    
  
Coen's lips pursed incredulously, "For someone whose terrified of me, you're kinda mouthy."  
  
"It's a coping mechanism, I think." Leon admitted, more than a little anxious at being suspended so high in the air. He was starting to get antsy and trying to "stand tall" didn't seem to be working. "But still...how do I know you won't go ape on me one day if I get on your nerves? Or that you won't drop me?"   
  
"... _'Go ape?'"  
  
_ Leon backtracked, waving an arm, "I meant go crazy. Get mad at me enough to hurt me."   
  
"I'd never do that!" Coen defended, eyes narrowing slightly. "I already promised you I wouldn't hurt you. I don't break promises!"   
  
"Didn't you plan to hurt me for calling you a brat? Tap me on the head?" Leon asked, remembering the finger hovering ahead.   
  
"Only a tap. I did it before. It's not like I broke your skull. I didn't hurt you..." Coen's eyes softened and with a concerned tone, asked, "...did I?"   
  
Leon didn't open his mouth for a moment. Seeing the growing worry in those window-sized eyes, he truthfully told him. "No...you didn't. Scared me though."   
  
Coen brought his other hand towards him, extended a finger that scratched the top of his head like a pet rodent. "You see? Like I keep saying, trust me. I take good care of my pets!"  
  
"I'm not  _your_ pet," Leon growled, trying to push the finger from his head, with no success, "I'm not  _anyone's_ pet! I was  _never_ a pet to begin with!"   
  
"You can keep telling yourself  _thaaaaaat_ ," Coen sung, continuing to stroke the top of Leon's head despite his efforts to evade the finger, "It's adorable!"    
  
Leon just let out a disgruntled huff, not entirely surprised that his proclamations were once again dismissed. He huddled back down into Coen's palm, sitting against the long fingers. As things stood now, there was no way to convince him to let him go, or that he was a person. The only solace he had was that the boy didn't seem to have any intention of hurting him or killing him. And since it seemed that he didn't really react out of anger at whatever Leon said, he could probably speak his mind without fear...at least, to some degree. He most definitely didn't want to push the limits.   
  
Coen stopped patting him on the head. "Since this is your first day, and I think Mr. Renovan is in the garden and I don't see Ms. Aria, I'll give you a tour around the house."   
  
Leon didn't protest, as least vocally, as the giant reached down for his sandwich and placed it back into the plastic bag. Then, with the wave of a hand, the door of the fridge opened, the grapes lowered itself onto a napkin that unraveled itself and lied down and the thimble hovered to the kitchen sink, pouring out the rest of it's contents from above. Leon's couldn't help but look on in amazement at the display of magic, turning his head as each item moved in different directions as if of its own free will. Precise and awe-inspiring...and what may have been just a simple thing to Coen.   
               
Leon felt Coen's thumb press down against his torso, pinning him to his palm, before the giant jumped down from his chair. He already made it a point in his mind to probably never board a roller coaster again. He was sure he'd be thrust upwards had he not been secured. The thumb left him and Coen began to walk.   
  
"You...barely ate," Leon pointed out, looking around as they swiftly left the cavernous kitchen. "I thought you said you were hungry."  
  
"Ms. Aria's going to make a big dinner later. I can wait a couple hours." Coen replied, walking through an archway that could encompass his entire apartment and then some.     
  
Like the kitchen, every other room was equally huge in nature, twenty times the size of what a normal sized room should be, maybe even bigger in relation to the luxurious decor and spacing from what he could tell. The dining room, spectacular in design with tall, clay monuments, a crystalline lamp hanging above a table longer than a football field, and an armoire the size of a skyscraper and filled to the brim with antique dishes and tableware; was definitely more fit for large gatherings. The next room Coen introduced him to was the living room, which was just as equally impressive. The walls, unlike the olive green ones of the dining room, were a nice Brunswick with white tapering. There was a sectional sofa with two smaller coaches on each side, a white and gray striped rug situated between them on an acacia floor. Another bookcase, even higher than the one in Coen's room, was situated in the corner, with tall windows on each side. A coffee table, with a wooden frame and glass center, sat in the middle of the room with a large television in front of it and a brick fireplace sitting parallel from it.   
  
Coen pointed to several objects, as if Leon couldn't identify them himself, as though he was unaware humans had similar things. And that may have well been the case, judging from the fact he didn't see him as a person. He would point with his free hand at certain items, from a glass sculpture of a three-headed dragon, to a picture of an elderly man with a pearl between his hands. Coen described how he witness the artist make them on two separate occasions, the painting apparently made two years ago, with the dragon made about four.   
  
In the end, the story became white noise until Coen went towards the next room.   
  
Bypassing the bathroom altogether, he walked into what he knew was a study room. In stark contrast to the cleanliness of the living room, dining room and kitchen, there were books littered everywhere. There were lines of shelves filled with hundred of books, the whole assembly nothing short of a personal library. Further into the room, was a step which led to a carpeted floor, a large desk, and a wall-sized window slightly obscured by thin, white drapes.   
  
Coen walked further in the room, stepping over some of the books that were on the floor, as he turned his head this way and that, as if searching for something.   
  
"This is the study room," he told him, in a more distracted voice unlike the tone he used when he introduced him to the previous rooms. It seemed that he found something as his eyes zeroed onto something below him. "Ah! There it is!"   
  
"There  _what_ is?"   
  
Coen leaned down to pick up a large, aged, green and black book that sat on top of a pile of books, journals and scrolls, tucking it under his arm before walking towards the desk. He lowered his hand on the desk top, tilting it slightly enough for Leon to slide off his palm and onto his feet. Leon looked up just as Coen faced the cover of the book towards him.   
  
"This is the spell book I used to bring you here."   
  
Leon eyes became wide as dinner plates. So that was how he was brought here...what was responsible for that portal and him being sucked up and brought to this world of giants. There was lettering that reminded him of Korean and Greek, mixed together to make completely unrecognizable letters. The book was even thicker than he was tall.   
  
The hope that it held something to get him back home surfaced. If he could somehow manage to get someone...anyone to read him a spell to get him home...   
  
Coen set the book onto the desk beside Leon with a thump. Leon took a few steps away as the giant opened it up, paper as thick as bed sheets whirling with the action, sending a small gust towards him. Coen flipped a few pages, eyes scanning the top left corner until he thumbed through a part where there were small, handwritten marks.   
  
"Here it is! The Terran-Summoning Spell!" Coen said, pointing to large, bold letters that Leon couldn't read.   
  
Deciding to take a leap of faith, Leon hopped up and climbed onto the book, which was chest high even while open. Standing up, he looked down and saw a picture on the left of a crudely drawn man holding a tiny figure in his hand. Leon immediately identified it as a human, a tiny silhouette in the man's palm. The illustration made him uncomfortable. On the opposite page, there were words, with letters easily bigger than his fist. Some symbols even bigger than his head.   
  
On the bottom of the page, there were letters and symbols in different handwriting. Judging from the fingerprints and strokes, he deduced it was Coen's.   
  
The boy confirmed it when he said, "I made some notes and stuff in the end. I tried the spell several times, but no human appeared. Then, I realized, that since the gate in Talsimo was still up when the book was written, the spell wouldn't work without some changes. So..."   
  
Coen pointed to the pile of books he had picked the spell book from. "...I studied Warp Magic more. It was pretty hard. But seeing as you're here, it looks like I eventually did something right."     
  
Leon, while getting the gist of it all, still was confused about somethings. "You mentioned something about a gate in Talsimo before. What is that?"   
  
"Oh, right. You Terrans really don't know  _anything_ about magic, do you?" Coen said in jest, with Leon unable to find any humor in it. "Well, it's a dimensional gate. There's a several dimensional gates in the world, each one to different worlds. I think you Terrans are the only ones that don't know about other worlds...I'll teach you about them."   
  
"Talsimo..." Leon reminded the boy as he went off track.   
  
"Right, Talsimo...so the gate that used to be in Talsimo led to Earth. And so long as that gate was opened, people could gather things... Terrans from Earth much more easily. It had been around for nearly three thousand years until it crumbled about a hundred years ago."   
  
It didn't take long for Leon to realize several things wrong with what Coen had said. "Wait a minute...so...you're telling me that you guys have been collecting humans for millenia!?"   
 _  
"Weeeeeeeell..."_  Coen trilled off, "Sorta...used to anyway...but since the gate got destroyed, we just had to stick with the Terrans we had already brought into this dimension."   
  
"Wait...so where are these humans?" Coen asked, a bit afraid to know the answer.   
  
"...Endangered...at least here." Coen said...sounding rather uncomfortable to admitting something like that.   
  
Leon jerked back. He had a sinking suspicion, given that Coen did go through the trouble of robbing him from his own world. But still...   
  
"How...can that be? You said the gate closed a hundred years ago. I mean, shouldn't there have been tons of humans already here? I mean...you said they were kept as pets. How did the human population dwindle so quickly?"   
  
"Well...y'see, the thing about that is..." Coen took a moment to choose his words carefully, as if mindful of how his charge may react, "...You know...it's a long story. I'll tell you another time."   
  
"Why not now? Why can't you tell me now?"   
  
"Like I said," Coen's voice came out surprisingly stern for a child, more likely because of his size, "I'll tell you  _another_  time."   
  
A bit startled and intimidated, Leon didn't press on and merely nodded. So far, Coen had taken almost everything he said in jest, and even promised not to hurt him, but it was frightening to hear him assert himself. As well as a bit humiliating to be fearful of a child.  
  
Coen seemed to immediately regret scaring him, before he lightly brushing Leon's shoulder with a finger. "Didn't mean to scare you, Clip. I'm sorry. But it really is a long story. I'll tell you eventually. I promise."   
  
There was an awkward moment of silence between them, with nothing but the sound of wind from outside and the rustling of plants, until Coen pretended to let out a cough before speaking once more. "Um...where was I? Ah, right! Warping Magic! So I learned about warping magic and decided to see if I could make some changes to the old spell and get things going. And so...I did. I mean, I had to keep making changes...I think I've tried the spell at least fifteen times. Or around that. I lost count after ten. But I guess that doesn't matter..." Coen brushed the top of his head with a fingertip and smiled warmly at the blonde human, "...since I managed to get it right in the end."   
  
Leon didn't even bother to fight his finger this time, having already proved futile. Pointing below his feet, where he stood upon the worn pages, he asked. "That's  _nice_  and all...but seriously, Coen...I want to go home. To Earth."   
  
Coen stopped petting him before letting out a frustrated sigh.   
  
"This  _is_  your home now. How many times do I have to tell you, I'll take good care of you?"   
  
"Earth is my home. This place is too big to be my home. You're too big. Everything's too big. Too dangerous."   
  
"I'll protect you," Coen told him, sounding a bit annoyed, "I wouldn't get a pet to just put into danger. And besides..."   
  
Coen tapped a finger to the bottom of the book, before looking Leon in the eye.   
  
 "Even  _if_ I did want to let you go, I think it's impossible for you to return back to Earth at this point."   


	4. Long Haul

"...Come again?"   
  
"I said I'd prote-"   
  
"After that." Leon said tersely, feeling as though the air had just become weighted, "I...I can't go back to Earth?"   
  
Coen stared at him for a moment and slowly exhaled through his nose before pointing back to the book. "Most warping spells usually only work one way. And that all depends on the properties of both worlds. Since Earth isn't really magical, it probably is close to impossible to send you back without any major problems."   
  
There was an moment of silence, with Leon's mouth remaining slack-jawed, gaping stupidly for a moment before closing.    
  
"But...you managed to bring me here...can't you just...make that portal tunnel thing I went through?"   
  
"It...doesn't work like that."   
  
The ten year old reached to his left to grab a large black and brown book placed it onto the table so Leon could see. Flipping through the pages, he stopped at a picture of a jaded diagram of the very portal that brought him in, covered in notes around the border of the pages. As if expecting Leon to be able to read it, he pointed to the foreign letters at the top. "With some effort, a successful two-way portal could be made, as long as it has some link between the dimensional gate. If the dimensional gate isn't intact, then the magical properties to make the two way system isn't there."   
  
"I'm afraid I don't follow." Leon replied, shaking his head, "Can you give me something to compare to?"   
  
Coen brought a hand to his mouth, letting out a prolonged contemplative moan, "Hmm...it's kind of hard to explain to a Terran that doesn't know what magic is..." before looking up. "I got it! Try to imagine it as a hole without a ladder. Easy to fall in, but without the ladder, hard to get out."   
  
"That's a scary analogy." Leon said with a shudder.   
  
 _"But probably accurate if I'm truly stuck here forever."_     
  
"Well, I was trying to figure out a way to explain it to you. I don't know how much of the universe you Terrans know."   
  
"How about something like going to a different country and losing your passport?"   
  
"...You Terrans have planes?" Coen asked quizzically.   
  
"Why are you shocked? You  _crushed_ my phone and knew that I understood solar power."   
  
"Well, yeah, but that's because the book about Terrans were developing phones before the gate collapsed and I mentioned solar power without thinking! But you understand that too?"   
  
Leon sighed exasperated. "Yes, Coen. We have planes. We have solar power. We have phones. I don't know how much this world compares to mine but I think we're pretty alike. I mean..." Leon began tugging at his hoodie, "...doesn't this look modern to you?"   
  
Coen leaned forward to get a closer look at Leon who fought the urge to jump as his eyes scrutinized him closely. "Now that you mention it..."   
  
Leon felt the beginnings of hope rise up inside him. Coen had to have start realizing that they were more alike than he thought. Both intelligent beings that were merely different in scale and with this world being capable of magic. He had to-   
  
"That is really weird. But whatever. Anyway..."   
  
Leon let out a sardonic dry laugh.   
  
 _"Of course..."  
  
_ "Even that analogy doesn't work as well. Try to think of it like a...a battery too. The dimensional gates aren't just gates, but are sources for warp magic too. I can summon a Canessi pixie here right now, and because the gate and world have magic as well, it would be easy for me to send them back or for them to go back on their own. Even if the dimensional gate was destroyed, because the world itself is magical, it isn't completely...eh, um...severed as much as Earth is to Mira. It would be harder to summon, but not impossible."   
  
"But," Leon said, feeling the beginning of a migraine coming in from all the influx of information, "Then...if the gate for Earth was destroyed, how did you get me here in the first place?"   
  
Coen then smiled again, a smile that was beginning to irritate Leon to no end. "Cuz', like I said, I  _am_ that good!"   
  
Before Coen could say anything else, Leon fell onto his knees, his head drooping.   
  
Alerted, the boy brought his face closer, "H-hey! Clip! Are you okay? What's wrong?"   
  
But "Clip" didn't respond. Instead, Leon, eyes glazed and mouth slightly parted, could only stare down at the large foreign words under him in his stupor.   
  
 _"I can't go back...?"  
  
_ "I'm stuck here...forever?" Leon whispered. His voice cracked, unable to hide the swelling emotions of hopelessness and despair.   
  
Coen seemed nonplussed, not expecting this kind of sadness from his pet. His mouth opened and reopened as he tried to find some words to say, but nothing came out and he bit his lower lip as he looked down at his human who looked far too lost for his liking. Coen then tapped his back, to rile him from his anguish. "Hey...hey c'mon. Don't be like that. Mira is a really nice place! I can show you to so many cool places too! Even other realms and worlds if we can! Like Rendarlia and Ji! I'll take really, really good care of you! Honest! I'll be the best owner ever! But...but..." Coen's voice became quiet as he searched for more to say to the unresponsive small human in front of him. He gently cradled his hands around him, and pleaded, "Please...don't be so sad. Please..."   
  
But Leon didn't look up to meet his eyes.   
  
Everything that happened before suddenly seemed so trivial, so far away. As if everything that happened in his life meant nothing. Everything he did, everything he learned, everything he experienced were no longer significant. It all led up to this: to be mere pet for a child. And that's all he would ever be: a pet. He'd have no way of contacting anyone he knew. Mom, Fran, Terrence...in a world apart. Probably to never know what happened to him. To never realize he was whisked to a realm where they'd be pets in a world of giants. That a child...with magic beyond imagination, was the new master of his life. A child who could...   
  
Who could...   
  
 _Could..._    
  
Leon had an epiphany. A drop of hope in the midst of an ocean of despair. A possibility...   
  
When he looked back up, Coen's saddened expression became shocked at his pet's change in demeanor.   
  
"Coen...?"   
  
Taken aback by Leon's monotone voice, but relieved to have him speaking again, he replied, "Yeah?"   
  
There was a pause before the blond asked, "You are a powerful magician, right?"   
  
"Um...the actual word is sorcerer since magicians are only people who do illusion magic and stuff. But yeah, I have really powerful magic."   
  
"Semantics aside, but you're good at magic right? Better than anyone else right?"   
  
"Well... _most_ people I've ever met. Mr. Loriscalo is more skilled than me, but he's really old and knows a lot more spells than I could."   
  
"Nonetheless, did he teach you that Warp Magic or whatever?"   
  
Coen shook his head. "No. Actually, I taught myself it. Nobody knows I was trying to bring a human here, not even him."   
  
"But you said its the hardest magic to learn? And that you couldn't bring a human here at first, right?"   
  
Coen raised a suspicious eyebrow before replying, "...Not at first. I kept tweaking the spell until I got it right."   
  
"Which means that, under normal means, it would have been impossible for you to bring me here, right?"   
  
"What are you getting at Clip?" Coen asked with a quizzical smile, not exactly knowing what his little human was insinuating.   
  
Leon slowly returned to his feet and walked closer to Coen's looming face, his huge eyes focusing on the tiny being before him.   
  
"Coen...you said it might be impossible to send me back because the gate to Earth was destroyed, right?"   
  
"Right," Coen said, the lids of his eyes lowering slightly, his breath tussling Leon's hair and clothes like a breeze, "Without the dimensional gate to Earth standing, sending a human back to Earth is most likely impossible. Even if I tweaked any more warp spells, any realm without magic cannot be linked back."   
  
"So then...what if the dimensional gate was rebuilt?"   
  
Coen's head flew back, away from the twenty-two year old, and gave him a look of disbelief. "Wha...? Fix the dimens-Clip, I know you don't know anything about magic, but c'mon. People have tried to fix the gate for  _decades!_ If it were that easy, I wouldn't have bothered with warp magic! And besides, why would I since I've got you?"   
  
Ignoring his last statement, Leon went on. "Coen. You said you know magic more than anyone you know. That you can use magic more than kids and adults alike. You were able to bring me here despite it being nearly impossible. You're ten years old, and learned and changed spells."   
  
 _"So?"_ Leon jumped a bit at the harshness of Coen's tone. It sounded like the child was beginning to lose his patience. He decided to tread carefully as to not have the boy shut him out. "I know a lot. But I don't know  _everything._ And I'm not going to just send you back there to Earth. It's better here, isn't it?"  
  
"As of right now, the answer is no," Leon told the ninety-five foot child who was taken aback from the human's honesty. "Coen, believe it or not, I have a home...friends and family...people back on Earth who I care about. Who care about me. People I want to see, who I want to be with...who I've come to know. Can't you imagine what it must be like...to never see those kind of people again? To be brought somewhere against your will and become someone's...plaything?"   
  
"But...you're not my plaything." Coen said quietly. He sounded offended...hurt. He began to speak faster, his voice becoming desperate. "I never even thought of you as a toy, Clip! And I never will! You're my human! And I'll take good care of you! I won't hurt you! Or sell you! I'll keep you safe with me, no matter what! I w-"   
  
 _"Coen?"  
  
_ A female voice sounded from somewhere beyond the study. Both Coen and Leon turned to the direction of the door, where the clacks of heels could be heard from afar.   
  
Before Leon could so much as utter a word, Coen's hand scooped him up from his position on the book and brought him towards a pocket on his gray, button-down shirt. With his free hand, he pulled the lip of it before tilting the hand that held Leon, sending him tumbling down into the fabric.   
  
He landed in a heap on his back at the bottom of the pocket, jostled as if he was thrown into a massive sack suspended in open air. He looked up to see Coen looking down from high above.   
  
"Be quiet and don't move." He ordered in a rushed whisper before he whipped his head up and looked back.   
  
"Coen, who were you just talking to right now?" The other voice asked. There was a slight Mid-Atlantic lilt to her voice, that sounded somewhat concerned and warm. "Is everything alright?"   
  
"Yes Ms. Aria," Coen replied cordially, his voice reverberated from his chest and from above. "Everything is fine. I wasn't talking to anyone. There's no one here but me."   
  
 _"Ms. Aria..."_  The one that Coen had warned him about. But her voice sounded so kind and inviting. Not like the kind of person who'd crush him. Then again, if Coen were a normal sized boy, he wouldn't have seemed to be the type of kid to kidnap humans from another world.  
  
"But...for a moment there, it sounded like you really were talking with someone."      
  
"Oh  _nooooooo,"_ A scraping sound was heard from somewhere below as Coen's body's turned, a movement that was enough to swing him up and down, before he righted himself again. "I was reading this book aloud. I'm at the good part, and got a little excited."   
  
The hidden human heard a womanly laugh before the same voice, Ms. Aria, replied, "Well, okay then. You always were an avid reader. You were just like your father. Getting so engrossed into books. I wish most children had that same fervor. Well...keep doing what you're doing then. Dinner will be ready in about an hour, give or take."   
  
"Okay. I'll be at the table by then. Thank you Ms. Aria." Coen said, nodding in the left direction.   
  
"Anytime. See you then."   
  
The resounding clacks began again, but this time, they were receding in the background. So much so, that after a few seconds, Leon had to concentrate to hear them.   
  
He heard the child sigh, causing the unsteady surface of the pocket to shudder. A split second later, the light from above was blocked when several human-sized fingers worked there way into the tiny space Leon occupied. Leon couldn't so much as move from them as they descended and began to wrap around him. Once two fingers managed to push themselves from under his arms, he was lifted out of the stifling pocket and into the air before he was deposited onto the palm of Coen's other hand.   
  
"That was too close." The raven-haired child informed Leon, who was more than aware, "We're going back to my room."   
  
Leon was once again subjected to vertigo as Coen rose up from his chair and walked out of the study. The moment they left the room, Coen's free hand rose above Leon, shielding him from sight, but also making him too warm in between his hands. Going up the stairs were less intense than going down them it seemed, as he wasn't bounced around as intensely.   
  
Once they reached the top of the stairs, Coen quickened his pace towards his room further down the hall and, moving his other hand from above Leon, swung the door opened. After he entered, he closed the door and turned the lock above.   
  
Seeming satisfied, he walked back to his own desk, which was smaller yet still hefty as the desk from the study. Laying his palm flat so Leon could climb off, he opened his book bag with the other. "Here, you can watch me study for a bit. Mr. Loriscalo gave me several assignments for me that are due tomorrow when he comes. Once I finish them, we can do some stuff together."   
  
"Coen...we really need to talk."   
  
"Later." Coen said, his eyes briefly pinning Leon in place before looking at several sheets and scrolls that he pulled from his bag. "I have homework to do. We'll talk later, okay?"    
  
"...Alright." Leon conceded with a sigh, before walking away from the boy just as he pulled out a pencil to look at his desk once more. He saw the paperclip, roughly two-thirds his height, that he tripped and glared at it. Clip was such a stupid name. And for a stupid reason. No matter what, he wouldn't ever refer to himself as such. He'd always be Leon.    
  
Aside from a book whose spine was thicker than his height, most of the books looked like they were there more for entertainment. Not that he'd know since the letters were all weird scrawls and strokes he couldn't read, but they seemed more colorful. There was a cylinder cup that was roughly seven feet high, with the stems of pens and pencils sticking up high from them like logs rather than writing utensils. There was a lamp that hung above the right corner of the desk like a porcelain blue and white striped willow tree, the lamp shade casting a shadow above. The light was turned off though, as there was ample daylight still shining through the window.   
  
As huge as the desk was, there wasn't really much he could do on it. The books were to large and were in a different language. Coen was busy working on an assignment. And he didn't seem all that keen are going back to the same conversation, so he said nothing.   
  
After a minute, Leon sat down and leaned against a book, turning towards the window. Apparently, it was afternoon and not morning. He had been out for longer than he thought. Either that, or time worked differently than time back on Earth. Nonetheless, he could merely gaze out of the enormous window, looking at the expanse of the sky.   
  
As Coen scribbled away on paper, Leon's eyes grew heavy. Everything that happened took a lot out of him, and he was growing sleepy faster than he thought he would. It was quiet, and for the first time, he could rest his mind. His eyes continued to droop lower and lower, before he could no longer focus on the blue sky outside and closed them completely. Just as he was about to enter a light doze, he felt a few thumps next to him. He groggily opened his eyes to see Coen looking at him, his index finger which had tapped on next to him retreating and a small smile on his face.   
  
"Hey, if you want to sleep, I made a more comfortable spot for you." The giant said with a growing smile. "I can take you to the bed I got for you."   
  
"Bed...?" Leon asked, still quite tired.   
  
Without warning, Coen's hand reached for him and picking him up from the back of his hoodie before he was set into another hand, erasing any of the lingering traces of sleep and sending his heart into high alert.     
  
Coen pushed himself off his chair and got to his knees onto the carpeted floor in one smooth motion for him, but sent poor Leon sprawling onto his hand. The dark haired boy sent an apologetic look before grabbing something out of his line of vision below and dragging it towards him.   
  
"Here. Take a look."   
  
Leon crawled towards his fingertips to look down to see what Coen was trying to show him.   
  
Below, was a box that was as large as a living room. On the bottom, there looked to be some sort of makeshift, green mat along the bottom. On the right hand side, there was a layer of white cloth folded up several times into a rectangular sheet, with a much smaller piece of tissue folded at the end of it, lying on the cloth. On the left side, there was a single bottle cap that laid in the corner. There was nothing much to look at, it seemed.   
  
"What am I looking at, Coen?" he asked, turning his head up to see Coen's smiling face hanging from above.   
  
"This is your room."   
  
Leon's eyes went wide. "My  _room!?"_  
  
"For now, at least," he said with a nod before lowering his hand down. When the hand was low enough, Leon extended a leg down and then another onto the floor. The hand ascended away, but Coen was still looking down from high above, even in a squatting position, he rose high above the walls of the cardboard box he was in. "I will get you a better place in a week. I promise."   
  
Changing his position so he was sitting on his knees (also causing the floor to tremble under Leon's feet), Coen pointed a finger at the mesh of cloth and tissue. "That, is going to be your bed until I get you a new one and that..." he said, his finger pointing to the empty bottle cap sitting in the corner, "...is your toilet for now."   
  
Leon's face paled in mortification.  _That_ was his  _toilet?_ There was no way he'd feel comfortable doing his business in something so...inadequate in his situation. If the cardboard box was this size then...it would smell a lot, wouldn't it? And...also...wouldn't that mean that Coen would have to clean up behind him? Like a hamster? Would he be allowed any privacy? He wasn't too keen on using the bathroom under a watchful eye and he would definitely hold it for as long as he could if it came to it. He truly hoped it wouldn't come to it.   
  
"What do you think?" The child asked from above.   
  
"I think I'd rather sleep on the desk."   
  
Coen gave a mock pout. "Hey, I'm good with spells, not decorating. But for now, this is where you're going to stay at night until I have a nicer place for you. But I can't have you trying to make a break for it when I sleep or am away for long. Not until I'm sure you won't try to run away."   
  
"It's not I have any where to go or anything." Leon muttered sardonically, "Can't you just...I don't know, use your magic or something to make a mansion or house?"   
  
"Heh, it didn't occur to me to try that actually. I didn't think you Terrans would...anyway, I'd need to brush up on that kind of magic but...I'm haven't really been looking into crafting magic all that much. I'll try to look into it to make things a bit nicer for you when I get the chance."   
  
Standing up to full height, dwarfing everything in Leon's tiny enclosure and casting a shadow further than he could see, Coen spoke. "I'm going to head down for dinner. I'll bring food back up as soon as I can, alright?"   
  
"You're just going to leave me in here?" Leon asked incredulously, his neck straining to meet the behemoth of a child in the eye.   
  
"Only for about half an hour. I'll be back here before you know it. You can rest for now."   
  
And with that, Coen walked away, taking himself out of sight with only two strides. A moment later, he heard him open the door and close it behind him, his footfalls no longer shaking the ground once he got far enough.   
  
With that walls of the cardboard around ten feet high and the cloth loose beside him, he briefly wondered if he could fasten a makeshift rope. He immediately dismissed the idea once he realized even if he escaped the box, he'd still be trapped in Coen's room. And even if he, by some miracle, made it out of the room, where would he go?   
  
Sighing, Leon walked towards the little mesh of cloth that was to be his bed and let himself sprawl across it.   
  
While he was tired, with a giant child no longer looming from above like an omnipresent eye of the sky, he was able to think with more clarity than he had since he arrived.   
  
If what Coen was saying was true, then going back to Earth may not be possible. However, it seemed like Coen wasn't telling him the whole truth, as he noticed he'd become very steely whenever he felt like not continuing a conversation. He wasn't in any position to get anymore out of him if he didn't want to say more, it seemed. At the very least, he was mildly eased by the fact that it seemed the boy had no intention to harm him, but he didn't want to test his patience enough to change that. For the time being, it seemed like he was content just keeping him as a pet. But of course, he had only known the child for only a couple hours. For all he knew, Coen could have been biding his time to break Leon into pieces.   
  
Leon grimaced. He had to stop letting his mind wander like this. It was unhealthy.   
  
But there was one good thing.   
  
If Coen was telling the truth...that he was a powerful magic user that was able to bring him to this world where everything was scaled up twenty times over, then there was a chance... _had_ to be even the  _slightest_ chance that Coen could send him back some way or another. He had to fight against the waves of cynicism to have at least some hope that it was possible. After all, what was there to do after he called it quits?  
  
He thought up ways of how he'd be able to talk to Coen. To persuade him to let him go or to try to find a way to at least have him look into the possibility of him returning in more depth. But as he thought and thought, the more tired he got. The 22-year-old took of his hoodie and shoes, leaving him in his pants, socks and T-shirt. He set his glasses on the floor, since there was no desk, and buried his face into the tissue-made pillow. He didn't feel well rested at all. He was still probably exhausted, even with some of the little rest he got.    
  
Before he nodded off, he resolutely told himself that he would go back home, no matter what.    
  


\--- 

Awaken by the sounds of thunderous, ground shaking footsteps from outside the door, he blinked. 

He immediately remembered he wasn't dreaming when Coen entered the room, the door creaking impossibly loudly as approached the box he was in, one hand holding something in his fist and the other grabbing the one of the flaps. 

"I'm back! Are you hungry?" Coen asked, beaming. 

Leon groaned, turning his head to look up at him. "More sleepy than hungry right now." 

Coen's smile diminished a bit. "I think warping you here took a lot of energy out of you." 

"Oh trust me, kid. I'm pretty sure that's just part of it." Leon said with a mirthless laugh. 

Coen merely shook his head. "Well then..." lowering his hand into the box, Coen opened his hand to let the contents roll out of it from his fingers. A piece of bread that was as long as his forearm, a tiny piece of meat, and a rice grain that could fit in both his hands were in a ripped napkin and were set on the adjacent from his bed, where he was lying. Even though they were taken as tinier components, they were still comically large compared to Leon. "When you are hungry enough, the food will be right there, okay? 

"Hey Coen..." 

"Hmm?" 

Leon leaned from his bed and turned his body, so he was sitting up. "Can you promise me something?" 

Coen's smile morphed into a thin line. "Clip, we've been over this." 

"No, no we haven't. Just please listen to me." 

"I know what you're going to ask." 

"No, no, really. Please...if you let me ask, then I won't bother you for the rest of tonight. I promise." 

Coen's face was unreadable when he said. "Fine." 

Leon took a deep breath, truly not expecting Coen let him go on. It occurred to him that while Coen may not see him as a person, he definitely didn't want to see Leon dissatisfied with his life. Deciding to not waste his chance, he congealed his thoughts and spoke. 

"Promise me that in the event that I...if on purpose or by accident, am in any sort of danger or if you can't take care of me, you will at least find a way to return me back home." 

"First of all, I already told you, the gate to Earth is d-" 

"Destroyed. I know. You told me a million times and I've only been here for a few hours." 

"Exactly. And second, you will be absolutely safe with me. I promised to take care of you, didn't I?" 

"And if you're sure you can keep me safe, then you should have no problem promising me right?" 

Coen began to sound like he was getting annoyed, his eyes narrowing slightly. "I don't need to agree to anything!" 

"You don't want me afraid of you anymore, right?" 

Coen blanked a bit, looking confused as Leon met his eyes. Leon swung his legs to the "floor" and stood up. "If you can't promise that, than how can I trust you? How can I know for sure you can keep me safe? I don't know you beyond you being the one who stole me from my world. Even if you say you won't hurt me, I can't really believe that. How am I supposed to believe that?" 

"I mean it Clip...I really won't hurt you." Coen told him, beginning to sound a little worn from the conversation. 

"My name is Leon. And even if you say that, should something happen to me, and if I can't leave, how am I supposed to be sure that nothing bad will happen again." Leon sighed before looking back at Coen. "...If...if you promise me that anything...not really good happens, then you will look into sending me back. Even if it looks impossible." With a sigh, Leon said resolutely, "I won't be as afraid of you if you do that."  

Coen didn't say anything for a moment before grabbing both sides of the box and, with a clipped "Hold on," pushed the box towards the underside of the bed, nearly sending Leon into the wall. Belatedly, as Coen pushed the box and ceiling was dark with box spring and dark blue, Leon realized the so called "wall" he had taken cover behind when he had been hiding from the boy was actually the very cardboard box he was in now. It was a sobering thought. 

The box stop moving, causing Leon to fall onto his back. He could no longer see Coen, but knew he was returning to a standing position from the quaking movements. 

"I need to prepare something for Mr. Loriscalo," The child's voice rung from above. "I won't be back for a bit. Try to get some sleep." 

As he felt Coen walk away, Leon sighed. Well, he tried. 

Opening the folds of the cloth, he cocooned himself. The fabric was a little itchy but not too uncomfortable. It was significantly darker under his bed than in the open, so he didn't have to worry about sudden light or anything of the like. He closed his eyes and huffed just as Coen opened his door. Leon tried to force himself into a restful oblivion. He didn't know how much had passed but it was already a long day.  

"I promise." 

Leon's eyes shot open the moment he heard those words. 

"If something happens, I will try to find a way to send you back." 

Speechless for a moment, a wane smile crawled up Leon's face. "Thanks." 

Leon never knew if he heard him as the door closed. 

While he didn't quite feel happy, he felt somewhat satisfied. This was something along the lines of moving forward. 

All wasn't lost, and for the time being, he was content with that. 

Closing his eyes once more, he soon entered a dreamless slumber. 

He didn't wake up until the next day.


End file.
